Casino visitors, revenue down in April

A decline in visitors dropped city revenue from operation of Isle Casino Cape Girardeau nearly 30 percent in April when compared to the previous month.

City officials say they are not worried and are looking forward to being able to measure the casino's performance year to year, rather than month to month.

About 32 percent fewer people visited the Cape Girardeau casino in April than in March. Numbers for April were down statewide, but the decrease in visitors to Cape Girardeau's casino, which opened in October, was steeper than at Missouri's 12 other gambling boats. Other establishments showed numbers ranging from a 17 percent decrease to a 1 percent increase, with most in a 8 percent to 12 percent decrease. There were five weekends in March, while April had four.

Mayor Harry Rediger said such ups and downs are to be expected.

"I was in the retail business for 30 years and there's always fluctuations in business," Rediger said. "I'll be very pleased when we get past the one-year point and we have some comparative figures."

Councilman Mark Lanzotti said the month-to-month variations were reason for the city to go slow and be cautious in connecting the revenue stream from the casino to large projects.

The casino's general manager, Chet Koch, was replaced by an interim administrator Tuesday.

Jill Alexander, senior director of corporate communications for Isle of Capri Casinos Inc., released a brief statement Thursday that said the company was "pleased with the property that we constructed in Cape Girardeau" and "comfortable with revenue trends." Alexander said financial information would be released with the company's quarterly financial report later this month. Its report in February showed a companywide quarterly increase compared to last year.

Ten percent of the total state taxes and half of the admission fees paid to the state by the casino in April -- about $316,500 -- will go to the city of Cape Girardeau. The city collected about $448,695 from fees and taxes generated in March.

Isle Casino Cape Girardeau had gross receipts, minus winnings paid, of $5.7 million in April from its table games and slot machines, down 25 percent from March, when $7.6 million in receipts were reported. March numbers were up 15 percent from February.

Of the $52,928,937 wagered on slot machines in April, the casino won $4,953,935 before taxes. Players risked $3,303,090 on table games, and the casino kept $730,894 before taxes.

The Missouri Gaming Commission releases monthly gaming numbers for all 13 casinos in the state, and visitors are tracked in two categories. "Patrons" refers to the number of people who come through the turnstiles to the casino floor. "Admissions" means the number of two-hour increments documented for each visitor, calculated by tracking entries and exits, according to commission officials. Missouri law requires casinos pay a $2-per-person admission fee to state and local governments for every two hours a person spends in the facility. A person who stays four hours counts as two admissions.

Visitors reported by Isle Casino Cape Girardeau in April were 81,896, compared to 123,000 in March and 103,022 in February. The casino collected an average of $69.42 from each of those patrons, up from $61.88 in March and $64.25 in February.

Isle of Capri paid 21 percent, approximately $1.2 million, of its April winnings from the Cape Girardeau casino in taxes and paid $394,222 in admission fees to the state. In March, $1.6 million in taxes were paid, along with $577,734 in admission fees.

Monthly gaming reports are available the 10th of every month at mgc.dps.mo.gov/nav_financials.html.

salderman@semissourian.com

388-3646

Pertinent address:

777 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.